(Laval) It would not be appropriate to say that Joshua Roy’s performance was worth the price of admission Sunday afternoon at Place Bell because there were only a handful of spectators, who did not didn’t have to pay a penny to witness it. In this context, we could at least say that it was of a high standard.
Thanks to a tally of three assists, Roy helped the Laval Rocket successfully close their brief preparatory schedule with a 5-2 victory against the Belleville Senators.
Inserted into a trio completed by Philippe Maillet and Filip Mesar, Roy skillfully prepared the first goal of the match, that of Maillet, after only 39 seconds of play.
Roy added assists on the eventual winning goal, scored by defenseman Jayden Struble, in the second period, and on that of Mesar, in the third period, after an effective forecheck on his part.
“They are two excellent players, and it clicked from the start of the match with a goal from Maillet. I think it gave us confidence for the rest of the game,” Roy said of his linemates.
Head coach Jean-François Houle complimented his young attacker as well as his two accomplices.
“Roy displayed his talent today. He showed that he could make skillful passes. I thought Maillet also played well and Mesar scored a nice goal. Three good players who are fast and hard to stop,” he described.
Houle also estimated that Roy and Maillet could form an interesting tandem during the season.
“Maillet can be a mentor to Roy. We try to put a young player with a slightly older player. Today we had (Lias) Andersson with (Riley) Kidney and (Sean) Farrell. It’s going to be a good combination to put young people well surrounded by players who are a little seasoned,” Houle said.
Nathan Légaré, during a numerical penalty in the first period, and Jan Mysak, in the third, scored the other Rocket goals.
Facing a rival without several players, because they had been recalled for the Ottawa Senators’ game against the Canadian the day before, the Rocket dominated 44-24 in terms of shots on goal.
As they did in Toronto on Thursday, Jakub Dobes and Strauss Mann shared the work in front of the Rocket net.
Mann started the game and allowed two goals on 13 shots in just over 30 minutes.
He gave in to Cole Reinhardt, in the first period, and to Matthew Boucher, who hit the target under the eyes of his father, Philippe Boucher, former NHL defender, in the middle period.
For this second and final preseason game, Houle used 11 of the players who contributed to Toronto’s 3-1 win on Thursday.
Also, he called on, for the first time, defender Logan Mailloux, whom the Canadian had sold to his school club on Tuesday.
“He’s a big guy, capable of playing physical. He uses his stick well defensively. He still has a lot to learn, but overall I think he had a good match,” analyzed Houle.
Used both on the power play and short of a man, Mailloux was satisfied with his meeting, after having spent his first days in Laval familiarizing himself with the concepts that Houle seeks to establish.
“When I arrived here on Wednesday, the team was already in Toronto and I started studying the game system before today’s game. I want to use today’s game to continue to improve,” said the young Ontario native.
Furthermore, Houle was complimentary of Struble.
“I thought he was our best defender today. He was very committed. He was physical. I really, really liked his match. »
For logistical reasons, the Rocket organization chose to hold the meeting in front of deserted stands.
Only family members of Rocket players were in the arena, scattered in seats located behind the two penalty boxes.
However, with the local opening fast approaching, the team responsible for match entertainment held a dress rehearsal, with commercial breaks planned and enhanced by… crowd entertainers!
A message was even heard, before the first throw in, to give preventative instructions to spectators!
And of course, people were asked to remove hats and caps and stand for the playing of the national anthem!
This local opening will take place Friday evening when the Rocket will host the Abbotsford Canucks. However, according to the information circulating, this match will be sold out.
And it’s not Roy who’s going to complain about it.
“It felt different playing in front of not many people. Felt like I did during COVID! “, Roy said with a sneer.
“I can’t wait for Friday. »
The same two teams will face each other the next day, this time in the afternoon.
